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3. After a Strong First Half, Lego Aims to Keep Expanding Its Hold on the Toy Market

Buoyed by a net profit and revenue increase of more than 10% in the first half of the year, Danish toy giant Lego plans to continue gaining market share despite a volatile global environment, the company’s CEO said in an interview with AFP on Wednesday.

“In recent years, we’ve consistently outpaced market growth and gained share,” said Niels Christiansen.

“I don’t think that trend is over,” he added.

From January to June, the plastic brick powerhouse reported a net profit of 9 billion kroner (€1.2 billion), a 10% increase year-on-year.

Revenue rose 12% to 34.6 billion kroner, marking its sixth consecutive half-year increase.

“The world has faced challenges and volatility, but I believe our operating model and the team’s dedication have been truly strong,” the CEO said.

According to Christiansen, this semester’s strong performance was supported by a diverse product portfolio, which added 314 new items, the brand’s solid reputation and the opening of 24 new stores, bringing the total to 1,079. These factors have helped extend the post-COVID lockdown momentum.

The family-owned business, still held by the descendants of founder Ole Kirk Christiansen and not publicly listed, benefits from a highly efficient structure with company-owned factories spread across the globe.

“The formula is working very well,” the CEO stated.

In the first six months of the year, the global toy market grew by 6.9%, while Lego grew at twice that pace, he noted.

Lego has been the world’s number one toy maker since 2020, according to market analysis firm Statista, ahead of Japan’s Bandai Namco and US giants Mattel and Hasbro. The company was founded in 1949.

After facing setbacks in the early 2000s, the family business bounced back by betting on franchises and films such as Ninjago.

AFP